South Africa Violence Aganist Foreigners

WITNESS-Photographing evil in S.Africa's townships | World | Reuters

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - I only realized how serious the attacks were when I saw a photograph of a man being burnt alive in a township east of Johannesburg.

South Africa Violence Displaces 25,000 Immigrant

Having worked as a photographer in South Africa for more than 10 years, I was no stranger to violence: I had seen angry people chanting slogans, blocking roads and destroying property.

But burning a man alive was evil and barbaric, a flashback to the worst violence under apartheid when opponents of the white minority government were shot and tortured by police and informers were "necklaced" with burning tires. By Siphine Sibeko.

There are believed to be between three and five million foreigners living in South Africa, most of them Zimbabweans fleeing poverty and violence at home.This violence against foreigners started on the night of May 11th and South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki doesn't approve the deployment of the army until May 21st. This is 10 days later.

Question: Are politicians exploiting the situation in Durban? Even though President Mbeki urged South Africans to welcome foreigners his action of waiting 10 days to use the army to stop this says other wise. And where is the United Nations? What are they doing to help the situation? It seems when it is black on black violence in Africa, the United Nations is no where to be found.

Why is this happening? in the words of CBC's Bruce Edwards, who is in Johannesburg, said it's the worst violence in the country since the end of apartheid.

"Millions of immigrants, most from poor neighbouring countries, come here seeking a better life," Edwards said, "but with half of the country's own population still living in abject poverty, and the resources scarce, many fear this … may still get worse."

When there is no economic growth, the populace will revolt.
Technorati Tags: violence

John McCain, He and Obama Should Meet Gen. Petraeus in Iraq.

ABC News: McCain Says He'll Go to Iraq With Obama

IRAQ HEARINGS: Sen. Obama Questions Gen. Petraeus

Republican John McCain on Monday sharply criticized Democratic rival Barack Obama for not having been to Iraq since 2006, and said they should visit the war zone together.

Republican
presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., speaks at the New
Mexico Veterans Memorial on Monday, May 26, 2008, in Albuquerque.

(Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)

"Look at what happened in the last two years since Senator Obama visited and declared the war lost," the GOP presidential nominee-in-waiting told The Associated Press in an interview, noting that the Illinois senator's last trip to Iraq came before the military buildup that is credited with curbing violence.

Wait, military buildup that is credited with just curbing violence? I thought that the Democrats said this was a civil war. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) had said that"the [Iraq]war is lost" during a press conference discussing Congress' standoff with President Bush over emergency funding for the war. Reid added that "the war, at this stage, can only be won diplomatically, politically, and economically. Senator Reid and the Democrats where wrong. We won with military buildup.

On Memorial Day, Obama chatted with N.M. veterans "As president of the United States,I will not let you down." he Promised. Senator Obama has never sat down, one-on-one, with General Petraeus.Even worse, he hasn't visited Iraq, and our brave troops on the ground, in over two years. And on April 8,when two-dozen Illinois veterans went to his office for a meeting, Senator Obama was unwilling to meet with them. He was in his office, just wouldn't come out. Why hasn't he met with General Petraeus? And why won't he visit Iraq? He doesn't have to go with Senator John McCain. He can go with Nancy Pelosi, she likes to make foreign trips. In fact she was there just last week doing what Obama should be doing.

Last, If you want to know how Barack Obama will lead our troops and speak to our generals just watch the video. In stead of asking questions to find out what is going on in Iraq, he lectures Gen. Petraeus. When he does ask a question it's the same question someone just asked. Sleeping or not there?

Senate, Domestic Add-ons Linked to War Funding.

ABC News: Deal Allows for Senate Vote on War Funding

SENATE LEADERSHIP RESPONDS TO FAILURE TO PASS WAR FUNDING

In the Senate, members of the Appropriations Committee added more than
$10 million in discretionary funding not requested by Bush, including
funding for grants to state and local police departments, $1 billion
for energy subsidies for the poor and more than $1 billion to help
Mississippi recover from Hurricane Katrina.

Reid always held a dim view of the domestic extras, knowing they would guarantee a veto and reinforce perceptions that Senate is to profligate. Indeed, Appropriations Committee members treated the war funding bill like the last train leaving the station and as a result, added billions of dollars for pet programs.

What ever happened to House Democrat leader Nancy Pelosi's time to begin to "drain the swamp" after more than a decade of Republican rule. The Republicans lost the 2006 elections because of their pet projects and now the Democrats are joining the Republicans "in the swamp."

The Democrats also won the 2006 mid term elections because they promised to rein in the excessive spending. The Democrats brought in the "pay-as-you-go" concept. Meaning no increasing the deficit, whether the issue is middle class tax relief, health care or some other priority. Pelosi is plotting a"guns-for-butter" strategy to try to force Bush to accept some newdomestic spending in exchange for the money he needs to fight the war. On "pay-as-you-go" the Democrats abandon ship.

Also pertaining to domestic add-on linked to war funding, Andrew Taylor Associated Press Writer, wrote that it included work permits for immigrant farm labor. I read this in my Wednesday, May 21, 2008, The Times-Picayune but when I looked this up on the Web I couldn't find it. I even looked this up the the Times-Picayune link and I couldn't bring this up. Question; Was this a miss print because it was dropped before the finial bill or are they trying to hide something from us?

It's time to rein in our politicians, no matter if their are Democrats or Republicans. We must use the power of the Web to e-mail our politicians, to hold them accountable for spending our tax money. The Democrats said they would hold the Republicans accountable but on this bill it seems they are both in bed together.

More on "pay-as-you-go."
Technorati Tags: Iraq,

US House Votes to Sue OPEC for Price Fixing.

House votes to allow suit against OPEC - Los Angeles Times

Will gas be rationed?

WASHINGTON - Congress' latest answer to rising gasoline prices: Sue OPEC.

Defying a White House veto threat, the House on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved legislation that would allow the Justice Department to pursue legal action against the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries for conspiring to restrict supplies or drive up prices.

It was the second time in a week that a majority of Republicans joined Democrats to support an energy measure over the Bush administration's objection and came as the average price for a gallon of self-serve regular set more records Tuesday -$3.80 nationally and $3.976 in California, according to AAA.

The White House warned that the measure could invite retaliatory action by the oil cartel, which supplies about 6 million barrels of crude to the United States every day.

If the United States sues OPEC, who will we be suing? A bunch of middle east countries that export oil? NO. There will be two South American countries, Ecuador and Venezuela, a founder member. Four countries from Africa, and Indonesia from Asia.Out of the thirteen members only six are from the middle east and one of them is Iran.

I would like to see us sue President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. I sure he won't retaliate against the United States. I also would like to see us sue Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He is urging OPEC members to from a joint bank and stop pricing oil trades in US dollars. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says oil valued at $115 per barrel is priced too low. I am sure if we sue him, he won't retaliate against the United States. And the other eleven countries will love us as we sue them and bow at our feet.

I don't know why Congress is so upset. Just last August, 10 months ago, CNNMoney.com reported that despite oil's record high last week, forget about crude going to $100 a barrel. The government run Energy Information Administration has a $50 target price for crude by 2015. Here we go, most analysts agree with EIA assessment. "This is an inherently cyclical business," said Edward Morse, chief energy economist at Lehman Brothers, who said he could see oil prices in the $40 to $50 range by 2010. Thats only a year and a half from now. Do you believe them?

Now the United States is going to sue OPEC. Are we going to have another oil crisis of 1973? The 1973 oil crisis began on October 17, 1973 when the members of OPEC announced, as a result of the ongoing Yom Kippur War, that they would no longer ship oil to nations that had supported Israel in its conflict with Syria and Egypt (the United States and it's allies in Western Europe and Japan.) I guess we should have sued OPEC then, because Syria and Egypt launched a military attack on Israel.

This proves OPEC doesn't need to sell us oil and we are just going to make them mad and they will produce less and really fix the price. So maybe the day that our Congress sues OPEC that will be the day that the 2008 oil crisis will begin.




Technorati Tags: OPEC Oil Congress